First AR...First Shoot...First Range Report

Learned a LOT today, so here goes in no particular order of significance:

1. I need more money cause I want to shoot 1,000's of round through this gun! MAJOR fun to shoot. I can see myself shooting 500 rounds a weekend, easily. Hmm...on a monthly basis that's a car payment.:what:

2. Wind gusting to 30mph can have a significant effect on 50 yd. accuracy.

3. $30 optics can work better than my ability to shoot through them. The cheap red/green dot worked just fine at 50yds.

4. DO NOT forget to bring everything on your range check list...like...the CLEANING ROD someone on the Forum TOLD you to bring.

Which brings us to:
5. Wolf steel ammo may fail to extract. If it does, you will need the cleaning rod WHICH YOU DON'T WANT TO FORGET AND LEAVE ON THE WORKBENCH.

6. Buy better ammo and more of it cause you're gonna shoot this gun A LOT!

7. I need to thank the Forum for providing plenty of "pre-range" info so I didn't spin out of control when a couple dozen Wolves stayed in the hole.

My "groups" were more like friendly "gatherings" first time out, but there's no question this gun will shoot WAY more accurately than I'm able to shoot today.

Your comments, feedback, opinions, and general Forum rants are welcome.

bpl

December 14, 2008, 03:33 PM

Get a Spikes Tactical .22lr dedicated upper with the black dog mags. It'll pay for itself pretty quick if you shoot a lot. I haven't done it yet, but its on the list.

BPL

d2wing

December 14, 2008, 05:06 PM

If it doesn't give you any trouble just keep shooting. On mine, a few stuck then it quit extracting at all. The extractor was damaged. If yours works fine
don't worry too much. If it happens and you have the parts, your got to go
in a few minutes. Depends on if you have a local dealer stocking parts at a reasonable price.

gunNoob

December 14, 2008, 07:03 PM

Stolen from under my feet :shifty

lol jk nice gun man!

~325irollin from BFC

FlyinBryan

December 14, 2008, 07:41 PM

great looking rifle.

that bushy is a first rate rifle.

i love mine too.

i also instantly love that trigger gaurd, very nice setup, hang on to it, its a keeper.

FlyinBryan

December 14, 2008, 07:46 PM

forgot to mention, look into reloading.

once your up and running, you can load 500rds of top notch hornady fmj for about 60 bux. primers, powder, and the whole works.

you do that and before you know it your experimenting with different loads and powders, then before too long your shooting m.o.a. with that rifle.

I'm certainly no AR expert - but I have heard a bit about this. My understanding, and perhaps others can confirm/deny this...
is that because of the steel casings, some gases are allowed into the chamber, causing fouling. It's that fouling that can cause things to stick.

Also my understanding that a sure-fire way to get casings stuck, is to shoot a bunch of wolf, then switch to something else. The "something else" will get a better seal in the chamber, which is now fouled to no end from the wolf ammo - causing it to stick and jam up.

Again, I have very little experience with ARs - so I may be way off, but that was the explanation I read some time ago.

helz_mcfugly

December 15, 2008, 04:23 PM

you got youself a fine rifle. I had damn near got the same one only mine was a flat top. its an M4 A1. now its got a 24" free floated Bull Barrel and an awesome Jewel trigger. yea that Wolf is some cheap ammo and it will stick/weld to your chamber and fail to extract every now and again and it leaves your gun very dirty, but some guns eat it up with no problem. mostly AK's, SKS's. Now that youve taken your first hit we all know you are fully addicted and rehab cant get you off the AR. So like FlyinBryan said, reloading is your next fix. once you get yourself a little setup to start reloading youll be addicted to that as well. Its as much fun as shooting to me plus you can make top of the line ammo for less than Wolf brand cheap. If you need recommendations on what to start with we would be glad to point you to what equipment to start with. I went a bit overboard and got the top of the line RCBS pro 2000 and found out it was a bit more then I needed to start with. but good choice on the Bushy, youll find there are some BM bashers on here, try to ignore, everyone I know who has them and myself all love them. Here is the Bushmaster "Helz McFugly signiture series" AR15.

f4t9r

December 15, 2008, 04:33 PM

looks like a nice AR. Enjoy shooting !!!!!

doc540

December 15, 2008, 06:39 PM

thanks everyone

mcfugly, I'm all ears. Outline a beginner's reload setup.

And what kind of accuracy is that gun of yours capable of??

dauuumm

CoRoMo

December 15, 2008, 07:55 PM

I'm just... jealous.

RP88

December 15, 2008, 10:33 PM

yea, I got tired of Wolf, too. My problem was that the round will usually get caught on the bolt as it came back.

However, I have since switched to PMC Bronze without problems at all.

helz_mcfugly

December 15, 2008, 10:38 PM

well my first and only AR Ive ever had is a Bushmaster M4 A1 flat top. same as yours. I paid $900 for it. I could shoot 1 1/2 to 2 inch groups. right off the shelf with a 16x bushnel banner scope at 100 yards. then I free floated the barrel which you can do for $40. ya just buy a free flaoting handguard, a barrel nut tool and that will improve your groups by a 1/2 inch. then I started reloding. I got the biggest baddest set they make. the RCBS Pro 2000 and all the scales and mics and dies. I think I spent 2500 my first day. If I were you I would go with a RCBS Rock chucker. google it, I think you can get one for about $150. You dont need a progressive reloader to start with. then get your dies and shell plate, powder scale, caliper, case trimmer, case tumbler to clean your brass, debur tool, hand primer, and a reload data book, I have the sierra book, or you can just use hogdens site, itll save ya $50. Ill take a picture of me reloading station to give you an idea. FlyinBryan, who can also give you lots of good advice, lives near me and hes the one that got me into reloading only he uses Lee, which is also good, check em both out. most places sell Lee and RCBS on the shelves so it makes it easier to just grab stuff when ya need it. but RCBS has lifetime warranty and their customer service is outstanding. so after I started reloading my groups got even tighter because I test different bullets with different powders to find what my gun liked, which is the fun part. your barrel flexes when you shoot and every different powder charge or bullet weight causes it to do something a little different so you find the bullet and powder charge that makes the best harmonics for you barrel and youll be shooting 1 inch groups with that barrel. I went from the 16" M4 chrome lined to the 24" stainless bull barrell and im still searching for my load but im getting dime size groups none the less but im tring to get sub MOA (all holes touching) at 100 to 200 yards. well ive rambled enough, feel free to PM me or flyinbryan any time with guestion and Ill post pics of mine and his reloading stations soon. and keep having fun

here is a thread I posted some pics of a few groups I shot after I fixed a problem I had with my barrel.

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=411171

helz_mcfugly

December 15, 2008, 10:41 PM

this is a good watch about harmonics of what your gun is doing when you shoot it. and why AR's (m16) are much more acurate then the AK. the AK does have more power but you can get an AR in 308 if power and acuracy is what you want.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6BpI3xD6h0

1832

December 15, 2008, 11:20 PM

My chrome-lined Bushy has been on a diet of steel-cased ammo since I got it last year. Over 3,000 rds of Wolf, Bear and Barnaul with no problems at all, provided you keep the chamber clean. A good chamber brush is an essential element in your AR cleaning kit.

helz_mcfugly

December 16, 2008, 06:56 PM

Here is a picture of my now mobil reloading station. I just moved so I stuck it on one of those folding workbenches until i get settled in. but thats it except for the medea tumbler. Im reloading 223 right now.

doc540

December 16, 2008, 07:57 PM

I like that custom vise.

Machined in Germany?:D

helz_mcfugly

December 16, 2008, 08:29 PM

nazi vice. machined by Hitlers 2nd cousins sisters boyfriend.

FlyinBryan

December 17, 2008, 01:45 AM

Here is a picture of my now mobil reloading station. I just moved so I stuck it on one of those folding workbenches until i get settled in. but thats it except for the medea tumbler. Im reloading 223 right now.

i seriously need to come over and help you build a good bench like mine and daves.

(on a side note, how the %&#@ did you post this at 4:56 today when you were at my house at 4:45?!!!)

you got some twilight zone/internet thing goin on or what?)

oh ya, i spy benchmark by your press

helz_mcfugly

December 17, 2008, 10:28 AM

Im not sure Im going to stay at this house or rent it and get something with 10 acres or more I can shoot on. Ive got my eye on this place in Kaufman county with 12 acres thats 3 miles from my work. I could push up some dirt burms and have my own 200 yard range with a climate controlled shooting bench/room thingy. pluss the wild pigs, coyoties and ground hog are over populated out there which would be awesome because you know ive always wanted that groundhog/coyote/hog pant ,shirt, jacket, boots, & underwear set.